A link in a media outlet costs €189.82 per post on average, and a link building buyer on Growwer spends €2,212 a year on 11.6 posts. Those figures cover every purchase made in 2025 and come from our annual link building report. But the average is misleading: half of the best-selling outlets cost less than €60, and a few go over €700.
This guide explains what makes a link cost €30 or €800, how much to invest per year depending on your type of business, and how to tell when you are overpaying.
How much a link costs: the data
| Metric | Amount | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Average price per post | €189.82 (€174.86 in 2024) | 2025 purchases |
| Average yearly spend per buyer | €2,212 | 2025 purchases |
| Posts per buyer per year | 11.6 (almost one a month) | 2025 purchases |
| Median price of the 90 best-selling outlets | €57 | Catalog on 28 September 2026 |
| Usual range of those 90 outlets | €26 to €223 | Catalog on 28 September 2026 |
The gap between the average (€189.82) and the median (€57) says a lot about the market: most purchases are affordable outlets, and a small number of posts on major publications pulls the average up. The average price rose 8.6% over 2024.
The outlet's traffic sets the price
What best explains the price of a link is the organic traffic of the outlet that publishes it. These are the 2025 averages for Spanish-language outlets:
| Outlet organic traffic | Average price per post |
|---|---|
| Up to 20,000 visits a month | €81.25 |
| 20,001 to 75,000 visits a month | €167.18 |
| 75,001 to 200,000 visits a month | €307.68 |
| Over 200,000 visits a month | €697.26 |
Authority (DR) follows the same ladder. Among the 90 best-selling outlets in the catalog, those under DR 30 cost a median of €34; DR 30 to 49, €44; DR 50 to 69, €83; and DR 70 or more, €363.
One caveat matters: 47 of those 90 best-selling outlets get fewer than 1,000 organic visits a month. Cheap outlets sell a lot, but a link from a site with no readers passes little authority and no visits. Before you buy, check the outlet's traffic with the website traffic checker and its authority with the DR checker.
Topic and country move the price too
With the same traffic, a finance outlet does not cost the same as a motoring one. In the report, News and Politics, Business and Tarot are the topics with the highest average price. In today's catalog, among the best sellers, Business and Marketing and SEO are the most expensive, and Motoring, Travel and Technology are among the cheapest.
The country weighs even more. Spain is one of the cheapest markets in the report: second to last of 24 countries by average price. In Germany, a post cost €618.70 on average in 2025. If your campaign is international, budget each market separately.
How much to invest per year by type of business
No single figure fits everyone. These examples use the average prices per traffic band from the table above and a reasonable publishing pace for each case. They are estimates, not fixed rates: the final budget depends on the outlets you choose.
| Type of business and pace | Per month | Per year |
|---|---|---|
| Local business or service SME 1 or 2 a month in local press and niche blogs (up to 20,000 visits) | €80 to €160 | €1,000 to €2,000 |
| Ecommerce 3 or 4 a month: topic blogs plus one mid-sized outlet a month | €330 to €410 | €4,000 to €5,000 |
| SaaS or B2B company 2 or 3 a month in business, tech or marketing outlets (20,000 to 75,000 visits) | €330 to €500 | €4,000 to €6,000 |
| Highly competitive industry (finance, insurance, health, betting) 4 to 6 a month: half mid-sized, half large outlets (over 75,000 visits) | €950 to €1,450 | €11,000 to €17,000 |
Three ideas to fit your case:
- Local business: a link in your city's newspaper is worth more than one in a national outlet unrelated to your area. See, for example, link building for law firms.
- Ecommerce: spending does not have to be flat. Focus posts on the categories that sell and bring them forward ahead of your big campaigns.
- Small budget: you can start with less than €100 a month by choosing outlets well. We explain how in how to get quality links on a small budget.
To see how many posts your budget buys at real prices, the pricing calculator picks the strongest outlets in each topic until the budget runs out.
Platform, agency or managed service: what each price includes
When you compare quotes, check how much goes to the outlet and how much is management. There are three ways to buy links:
- Platform: you choose the outlets and pay the price of each post. Growwer is free to use, with no subscription or commitment: you pay only the price each outlet sets, which includes publishing the article.
- Agency: adds strategy and management fees on top of the outlets. It makes sense if you lack the time or team to pick outlets and review posts. If you are hiring one, read how to choose a good link building agency first.
- Managed service: a team picks the outlets, writes and publishes for you. Growwer's managed service starts at €500 a month with no commission: the budget goes to outlets.
Who buys says a lot too: in 2025, 45% of buyers were agencies, 34% companies, 12% freelancers and 9% individuals.
How to spread the budget over the year
A link does not rank the day it goes live. Google has to crawl and index it, and the effect shows weeks later. So it pays to:
- Keep a steady pace instead of buying ten links in one month and none in the next three. A link profile that grows regularly looks more natural.
- Bring seasonal campaigns forward by six to eight weeks. If your peak is Black Friday or Christmas, posts should be live in October.
- Point at the pages that sell: categories, services and landing pages, not just the home page. If in doubt, read where backlinks should point.
Signs you are overpaying (or underpaying)
- A price far above its traffic band: an outlet with 5,000 visits a month charging €400 is out of market.
- A price far below it with no explanation: high DR, zero traffic and €15 usually mean a blog network. Learn to spot them in PBNs in SEO: how to identify fake outlets.
- Outlets that publish anything: if casinos, crypto and recipes share the same front page, the link loses value.
- Promises of guaranteed rankings: nobody can guarantee them. More signs in the guide to avoiding link building scams.
Frequently asked questions
How much does a link in an online newspaper cost?
It depends on its traffic. In 2025, an outlet with up to 20,000 visits a month cost €81.25 on average, and one with over 200,000 cost €697.26. Major national newspapers sit at the top end.
How much should I invest in link building per month?
The average Growwer buyer invests about €185 a month (€2,212 a year). A local business can start with €80 to €160 a month; a highly competitive industry needs €1,000 or more.
Is it better to buy a few expensive links or many cheap ones?
Neither by default. A link in an outlet with real traffic in your topic is worth more than ten on blogs with no readers. Mix outlets from different bands and put relevance first.
Does link building get more expensive every year?
On Growwer, the average price per post went from €174.86 in 2024 to €189.82 in 2025, 8.6% more. The full data is in the 2026 link building report.
